Coffee Klatch Performance

The Teen Pulse Trashers and Jazz Combo performed at the Coffee Klatch on July 18th, 2012.  In case you missed it, I’ll catch you up on it!

The Trashers introduced Teen Pulse when they played one of their pieces to start off the show, the Jazz Combo then played Little Sunflower, Misty, Don’t Get Around Much Anymore, and Watermelon Man. The most impressive element about these groups is they have only been playing together for six weeks! Miss Q let the audience in on the combo’s most recent learning experience, improvisation. If you’re not impressed yet, I won’t hesitate to inform you that all of the jazz combo’s unique solos were improvised on the spot by these talented, young performers. Improvisation is “in the moment” music composition, they are all spontaneous and are based on chord changes in the music.

“I’ll play it first and tell you what it’s called later.” -Miles Davis

The soloist included Maddi Dow on violin, Jessica Ramos on Clarinet and Trumpet, and Elita Barus on Drums and Electric Guitar.

After the Jazz Combo was through with their set, the Trashers took the stage and performed 4 pieces: Swing Jam, Trix, Reuse, and Jiggawatts. The audience really enjoyed their choreography and creative visuals while performing.

I was taken aback by some of the visuals, impressed with what these Pulsers were able to do, spinning drumsticks while playing complicated rhythms and running around each others “CANtraptions” while playing and getting back to their own spot just in time to continue playing. The final piece they played was complete with intense choreography by Stan Hogeweg and Andrew Calonge performing fierce and animated fight scenes while playing their “CANtraptions.”

The members of the Jazz Combo and Trashers all attend several different schools, locations spanning from Rancho Cucamonga to Beaumont, CA. This is one of the most interesting elements about Teen Pulse, bringing students from different high schools to rehearse and play together, giving each student the ability to expand their camaraderie and friendships throughout the area.

After the Pulsers finished performing, the Teen Pulse Staff decided to give Open Mic Night a shot.

I (Jessica Nuñez, intern) accompanied by Janie Vail, the Riverside Community College Marching Tiger’s lead vocalist from the Les Miserables 2011 marching band show, performed “Landslide” by Stevie Nicks and “The Story” by Brandi Carlile.

Inspired by one of her students, Miss Q stepped down from her teaching soapbox, dusted off her bass guitar and played Victor Wooten’s “Amazing Grace” which captivated the audience with the sounds of the bass harmonics.

The owner of the Coffee Klatch, couldn’t stop raving about how great the Pulsers were, constantly telling the audience to give Teen Pulse another round of applause. Musicians in the audience making comments about how great the Pulsers were performing, talking about their surprise at how short of a time they have been playing together. The audience erupting into applause after every performance finished and proud parents taking pictures and recordings of their Pulsers were just some of the memorable moments from this night.

So if you missed this performance, it can never be recreated exactly the same, you’ll have to attend another one-of-a-kind performance!

Jessica Nuñez is a Music Education major at the University of Redlands and has been interning with Teen Pulse since Summer 2011.